Axminster needle motion and thread control therefor



o. v. PAYNE 2,258,193

AXMINSTER NEEDLE MOTION AND THREAD CONTROL THEREFOR Oct. 7, 1941.

Filed Feb. 8, 1941 3 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOQ.

. Os cmav. PAY NE- T HTTORNE Oct. 7, 1941. o v P YN 2,258,193

' 'AXMIVNSTER NEEDLE MOTION AND THREAD CONTROL TEEEEEDR Filed Feb. 8',1941 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 FATE : m. ATE-o9. av

0. v. PAYNE Oct. 7, 1941.

AXMINSTER NEEDLE MOTION AND THREAD OONTROL THEREFOR 3 Sheets-Sheet 3Filed Feb. 8, 1941 NON MOM

XNVENTQR Oscae V. PAYNE;

ORNEY L Patented Oct. 7, 1941 .UNlTeo STATES PATENT OF E AXMINSTERNEEDLE MOTION AND THREAD CONTROL THEREFOR Oscar v- Payn Leices e a s.assi nor to C o n cn 8r KnowlesLoom W rks, Worc s er, Mass., acorporation of Massachusetts Application February 8, 1941. sear No.378,041

mclaims. 191-139-124) 1 Thisis a= continuation-impart of my co-pendzingapplication Serial No. 302,403, andrelatesto a type of needle motion forAxminster looms such asshown in my co-pending application Serial No.363,129.

7 It is the'general object of the. present invention to provide anAxminster needle operatingmecha nism including stationary and movablesheaves and a needle driving cable trained aroundthem, and whereinprovision is made for consuming more time to reverse theneedle when itis out of the shed than when it-is in the shed, thereby providing timefor the beat-up and dipping. of the tube frame. 1

In the cycle of Axminster loom operations the needle must be out of theshed long enough to permit dipping of the tube frame and also beat.- upof the weft laid by the needle. Ithas been common practice heretofore touse intermittently operating needle driving mechanism whichholdstheneedle stationaryv during the tube frame'dip, ping and beating upoperations, but a continu.-. ously. moving needle actuator continues tomove during the time that the needle is out of theshed and someprovision must be made to permit this A motion without inserting. theneedle into the shed. I: l 1 I a. It is an important object of mypresent inven tion toemploy. a continuously moving actuator for theneedle connected to the latter by strain of rnechanism which includesmeans formoving the needle at a relatively. slow rate when: it is'out ofthe shed, such for instance as planetary gearing which produces a veryslow reversal of the movable sheaves when the needle is fully retractedfrom the shed. I

Axminster looms customarily employ a selvage shuttle at the side of theloom opposite the needle operating mechanism the purpose of which is tointerloop a selvage thread with the double pick ofweft laidby the needlewhen the latter is completely in the shed. The slow-re versal of theneedle when it is out of the warp "shed iscompensated for by alquickreversal of the needle when it is in positionto cooperate with theselvage shuttle. 'It is a further object of my present invention tocorrelate the sel'vage operatingmechanism with the planetary gearingsothat the selvage shuttle will have :an operating: weft looping strokeWhenthe planetary gearing mechanism has completed the movement of themovable sheaves whichinserts the needle into-the shed. l

.. the needle moves into the shed in theusual Axminster loomv its wefttravels from the sta- Y tionary package through stationary guides to andthrough the needle eye. The weftis required to unwind and to movethrough guides atrapprox-ie mately-twice therate of the, needle motion.When a planetary gearing mechanismis employed there are times when theneedle travels faster than heretofore, which would result in an increasein therateof travelof the'weft if former weft con.- trolswere used. Itis a further object of my present invention to mount an additional guideeye 'for the weft on the needle near its outer end andal'e'ad the weftfrom the stationary package to the additional eye in such a directionthat: the amount of yarn drawn from the package during a. needleinsertingmotion will not be substan,- tially longer. than the length ofthe needle. 11i this way the rate of weft unwinding and movement throughthe guides is greatly reduced relatively to the needle rate and thelatter can beincreased by the planetary gearing without subjecting theweft to strains proportional to the faster motion ofthe needle. Thisfeature of my present invention is not necessarily limited to theparticular type of'needle operating mechanism set forthhereinafter, butis particularly useful when planetary gearing is used to drive theneedle.

1 it-risa .further object of my present invention 'so'tocontrol the weftyarn which leads from the stationary package to. the delivery eye of theneedlethat part; such as half, of a double pickis unwound during theneedle inserting stroke, while the remainder, or other half, is unwoundas the needle :moves .out of the shed. By this arrange.- ment both J theinserting and the retracting strokes ofzthe needle'are used to unwindweft andiithe unwinding becomes substantially continuous: instead ofintermittent, as heretofore. In thisc'onnection I lead the weftobliquely to the additional eyeon the needle and in such'a directionthatthe slackness in the weft due to. needle motion ismQre than taken upbythe'weft which th'elneedle carries into the shed, hence there is acontinuous unwinding throughout the needle mo..- .tion and the .weft isalways kept taut.

With these and'other objects in view which will appear as thedescription proceeds, my. invention resides in the combination andarrangement of parts hereinafter described and set forth.

the accompanying drawings, wherein a con.-

.venient' embodiment of my invention is set forth, Fig. 1 shows a frontelevation of my needle .inechanismarranged at the right hand side of aloom with the needle in the warp shed, if" Elgdflis a plan view in thedirection of arrow 2, Fig. 1, showing not only the needle but certainFig. is an enlarged detailed front elevation of,

part of the planetary gearing mechanism shown in Fig. 1,

Fig. 6 is a horizontal section on linetfifi Fig. 5, M

Figs. 7, 8 and 9 are diagrammatic views-showing the manner in which theweft thread is supplied in the preferred form of weft control, U Fig. 10is a view similar to Fig. 'l showing a modified form of weft control,

V Fig. 11 is an enlarged diagrammaticvi'ew similar to Fig. 10 showingthe relationshipwhich causes'the weft to remain tautvthroughout'substantially the whole needle stroke, and c Fig. 1'2.isanenlarged detail plan view in. the direction of arrow I2, Fig. 1. 1

Referring to the drawings, particularly Figs. land 2, I have shown theframe In of an Axmine ster loom having a. cloth board. ll over which thewoven fabric F moves from the point of tuft formationto a. wind-up rollnot shown. The binder warp threads B extend rearwardly from the clothboard through a reed R mounted on .a backwardly. and forwardly,reciprocating lay L. Harness frames H behind th layshift vertically todivide the warpthreads into topand .bottomsheds S and S, respectively;Thegweft needle N .is attache-d at its right end as seen-in Fig. 2toaneedle carriage l2 which slides along a stationary needle rail; l3sufficiently long .to accommodate the motion of the needle into and outof the warp shed; 1

The loom has a set of tube. frames Tthree of which-are shown in Fig. 3.These tube frames are moved. successively to a delivery point under a'pullover shaft 23, by-two transporting chains one of which is shown at.The tubeframe in delivery. position is. temporarily disconnected fromthe; chainsand lowered to tuftforming position by arms 25. The tuftyarns Y are pro-'- jecte'd downwardly through the warp sheds as shown inFig. 3 to positionsbetween theucloth board and the needle. The needlethen'lays .a

shot of'weft inthe shed behind thextuft'yarns andis l-retracted, afterwhich the reed heats up to force the weft and;yarn tufts over the hooks26' ongthecloth board 'H to a position infront of the. hooks. The tubeframeisthen raised to draw offenough yarnfor the nextrow of tufts whilethe reed is held'forward to. prevent tuft slippage, andtheharness framesshift" to form a new shed. .The front and back knives :21 and .28,respectively, then approach eachother. during the*ensuingkbackwardmotion of the reed'and start to cutat the left end ofthe loom; as soon as .the'reed has. moved far enough rearwardly toclearxtheback knife. Sho'rtlythereafter the reed isback. far enough topermit entry of the needleinto the new 'shed while the knives are stillcutting the yarns .Y, and the cutting ordinarilyf. continuesuntil-theneedle is, entirely in the shed. a i i As the needle moves outof the. shed the. reed starts forward again. cutting having; been mm,pleted, and the rear. knife having moved back .far. enough to.clearlthe' advancing reed." The needle moves into and out of each warpshed and has a complete reciprocation for each backward stroke of thelay while the warp threads are spread apart to form a shed, and theharnesses form a new shed for each reciprocation of the needle.

The matter thus far described is of common construction and may beconstructed and operated as is customary in Axminster looms.

The loom to which my invention is applied has extending therefrom afloor plate 30 on which is supported an end frame 3| secured to the loomframe. .Fastened to the end frame is an upright bracket 32. to which theinner end of the needle rail 13 is secured. The rail includes top andhottom bars .33 and 34, respectively, between which slides a guide shoe3? on the needle carriage. The right end of the needle rail as seen inFigs. 1. and 2 is secured to a second bracket 38 mounted on a post 39supported by the floor. The needle rail is thus held in fixed positionwith respect to the loom so that the needle may be guided along thereed. when moving into and out of the warp shed; 'Th needle rail and itsmounting may be of the usual construction but is part of a frame whichsupports the sheaves as will be pointed outhereinafter. i

In carrying my invention into effect I provide a cable preferably intwo. sections and having its ends fixed and trained around .two sets ofmovable. pulleys located between two sets of stationary pulleys, one ofthe :latter sets at each end; of the needle rail. The needle carriage'I2 is attached approximately at its mid pointto the cable and is causedto'slide along the rail when the movable pulleys. are actuatedbyydriving mechanism including such -mechanism as 'plane tary gearingnow to be described .to move the needle. slowly when it is out of theshed.

:44 secured to the end plate 3| and extends fore Wardly to havekeyedthereto a radius arm 45.

The bearing 44 has secured thereto a solar gear 46 which meshes withaplanetary gear'd'lkeyed to a stud .48 rotatablein a ballbearing 149 orthe like mounted on'the radius arm 45. Fixed togthe 'stud 48 is aneccentric 50 aroundflwhich extends an eccentric strap 5| secured to a'driving arm,52. The angular positionofthe' eccen trio with respect tothe stud 48 and planet gear may be varied by means of anut 53 threaded'on the stud and tightened to clamp: the eccentric agjusted positiononthe'stud; as' shown in The driving. arm 52 is pivote'd'on a s'tudt55carried by an actuating lever ,56 the upper'end of whichhas fixedthereto a transversely extending stud-51. "A horn 58 on the end plate3lis .pivotedat .59 to a depending link 60' which is also pivotedon thestud 55, and the stud 51 and ipiv- 0t 59 ar'e'preferably equi-distantfrom'stud :55.

By means of the bolt and slot connection indicated at 6| in Fig. 1 theloweriend of. the :actuthe shoe is pivoted as at 63 to a link '64pivoted moved to the-right and left as viewed in Fig. 1 during theoperation of the mechanism, and-stud 51 moves in a substantiallyhorizontal line. I

As shown in the present'instanee the stud 51 has mounted thereon sixsheavesor pulleys three of which, indicated at 61,- BB and 69 are infront of lever 56, while the other three indicated at I0, TI and I2 arebehind said lever: A plate I5 rigid with bracket 38 is provided with tworods Iii "and 11 adjustable thereon in a direction parallel, to theneedle rail and having mounted" on their left ends fixed pulleys 18and-I9, respective- 1 A third rod 80 also secured to the plate'l5 isadjustable thereon'toward and from the center ofxthe loom, while anextension 8I- of the bracket itlijhas rotatably mounted thereon anotherstationary pulley 82.,

Near the inner or left end of the needle rail asviewed in Fig. 2g,-;thebracket 32 is provided with a plate 8 5 in which are adjustably mountedtwo "rods 86' and '81 similar to rods 16 and I1 and having mounted ontheir right ends stationary pulleys Biiaflnd 83,*respectively; Athird-fixed pul- I fiiyis located a compression spring 93 acting a tomoye the rod 9I' away from the actuatorlever 56. The operating cablealready'referred to is preferably made in two sections I00 and IIJIwhich areattached' to :and extend to the right and the leftrespectively, from the needle carriage I2. The cable section It!) isfastened tothe needle carriage as at I02 and istrained successivelyaround pulleys 82, II, 19, I0, 18,51 and then extends torod-80 and isconnected thereto at I03.

The cable sectionIflI is attached to the needle carriage at I05 andistrainedisuccessively around pulleys 90., I2, 89, 69, 88, 68 and thenextends to rod SI to be fastened to it at I06. The spring 83 serves tokeep the cable taut and, although shown herein, is described moreparticularly and claimed in my co-pending application Serial No.363,129;

In the operation of the mechanism just described shaft 140 willpreferably though not necessarily rotate at a uniform rate and willcause arni to" rotate in the direction of arrow a, Figs. 1 and .5, thusmoving the planet gear 41 around the solar gear 46 to cause rotation ofthe eccentric around the axis of stud. The effect of this rotation ofthe eccentric is to reciprocate connector 52 and actuator lever 56 tocause reciprocation of the movable pulleys to move the needle into andout of the warp shed. The. character of thismotion is showndiagrammatically in Fig.5, from which it will be seen that aconsiderableretardation is produced in the motion of lever when thelatter is in that part of" its sweep which movesthe needle out of thewarp shed. The "dot and dash light line b represents the circular pathof stud 48 and the center of the planet gear, while the heavy dot anddash line c represents the path traversed by the center of-eccentricilland strap 5I. Since the strap andconnector- 52 are attached to thelever56 themovement of thelatter is represented by the heavy dot and dashlinesc, and from Fig. 5 it will be seen that aconsiderable amount ofangular motion on the part'o f shaft 43 produces a verysmall motion oflever-p56 and the movable pulleyswhenthelatter-are to the left or inthedotted line position shown in. Fig. 1 corresponding to the position ofthe needle when the latter is. out of the warp. shed. The retardationthus produced inthe motion of the needle when the latter is out oft-heshed afiords time for the operation of other parts of the loom without.interfering with the needle, such for instance, as the layandtube frame.There is necessarily a corresponding rapid motion of the lever and theneedle when the movable pulleys are tothe right, as represented by thegreater curvature in the righthand part of line 0, Fig. 5, andcorresponding to the position of the needle when fully inserted into theshed.

The planetary gear drive described herein. is an I improvement over themechanism shownin my co-pending applications Serial Nos. 293,184 and363,129 to which reference may be had for further details of themechanism set forth herein.

Th needle lays a double pick of weft and provision must be made forlooping this weft'to form a selvage when the needle is fully insertedinto the shed. For this purpose I'employ the selvage mechanism which maybe constructed as set forth more particularly in Figs, 2 and 4. Thedriving shaft 40 extends across the loom and has secured thereto at theend of the loom opposite the needle operating mechanism a cam plate I 20having three cam points I2I which cooperate with a lever I22 pivoted atI23 with respect to the loom frame." The lower part of lever I22 has anarm I24 which is held in position for periodic engagement with the campoints I2I by a spring The upper endof lever I22 is attached by means ofaconnector- I26 to an arm I2I' mounted on a vertical shaft I23journaled; for oscillation in the loom frame. A secondarm I29- securedto shaft I28 extendstoward a shuttle race I30 and has driving contactwith a selvage shuttle I3I supplied with a selvage forming yarn W.

During loom operation shaft 40 makes one complete rotation every thirdbeat of the loom, but the lever I22 is oscillated-for each beat of theloom by one or another of the points I2I and the latter are so spacedandalso held in such position relatively to shaft, by means of bolts I32 asto cause levcr' I29 to move the selvage shuttle in "one directionthrough the loop of'weft when the needle is fully inserted into theshed, and then reverse the shuttle direction after the needle hasstarted back, thus binding the weft loop to the selvage. Thistimerelation is insured by reason of the fact that shaft 40 drivesboth theselvage shuttle actuating mechanism and the stud shaft 54 which operatesthe actuator lever -56 and the movable pulleys through the planetarygearing. As already explained, theretarding of the needle motion-whenthelatter is out of the shed is compensated for by a relatively quickreversal of the needle when the same is in the shed and the necessityfor being able to time the selvage shuttle accurately with respect tothe needle is due to the fact that the planetary gearins gives theneedle a quicker reversing motion than; usual when it is in the shed.

From the matter thus far described it will be understood that theselvage shuttle operating mechanism and also the gearing used to drivethe movable pulleys are both connected to the driving shaft of, theloom, and the planetary gearing is setin'such away thatthemovablesheaves are moved. to their extreme. right hand position to.placethe needle fully in. the shed at the same time that the selvageshuttle has its selvage looping' movement; T I i As already stated, theplanetary gearing mech+ anism operates in such-a way as to cause arela-' tivelyrapid motion of the needlewhen it is inithe shed,'and inorder that the weft may not be'subjected to excessive strains 'whiletheneedleiis moving rapidly in thershedl' provide a setgof threadguidesshown in Figs. 1,.and;2 and set forth diagrammaticallyin Figs. 7to11. I g

Referring particularly to Figs. 7, 8 and 9, which show the preferredform of .weft. control, the package of weft P may be located near theright hand side of the warp andclose to the'n'eedle.

' The weft leads from the package P through a stationary guide eye200'and thenexten'ds rearwardly through axsecond guide eye l and thenforwardly to an additional or auxiliary guide eye 202 which is mounted:on the: needle :carriage and movesback and forth therewith. From the eye202 vthe yarn extends along the needle to the usual delivery eye. 203;at the point of-the needle andthence to the adjacent selvage.

As shown in Fig. "(that partof the weft which lies between the guide 200and; eye 203 is divided into three substantially equal lengths whichform a triangle. Thelength e extendsbetween guides 200 and 2M length Iextends between guides 20| and 202, while. length gextends along theneedle between the'eyes 202 and 203, and becomes the first half ofthedouble .pick to be laid by the needle. When the. needle moves intothe shed toward the position, shown in.- Fig. 8 the length of weft 9passes through the delivery eye203 and lies in front of" the needle andthe length 1 passes through the eye 202 and extends along and behind theneedle to become the second half of the double pick. The length e passesthrough guide 20! while a new length his unwound from thepackage anddrawn through guide 200 to'lie between the latter and guide 20!. Duringthe insertion of the needle therefore it is necessary to unwindanddrawthrough guide 200 only the length it which is substantially thelength of the needle, or approximately one half a double pick.Similarly, the length of yarn drawn through any of the guides is notsubstantially greater than the length of one half a double pick. J

After the I selvage shuttle has operated the needle moves back out ofthe shed toward 'the retracted position shown in Fig. 9, and in doing sosection e will passthrough themovable eye 202 and extend .along theneedle to the delivery eye to become later the, first half of the nextdouble pick, the section it will pass through the guide 20! and extendto the eye 202, while a new length 70 will be unwoundand pass throughthe guide. 200 toward guide 20!. Here again, half of a .doublepick isunwound by the outward stroke of the needle. From this itwill be seenthat each stroke theneedle unwinds a length of weft equal substantiallyto one half a double pick, a complete reciprocation providing the yarnfor a double pick. "."It is apparent also that the weft unwindsandtravelsthrough the guides between the package and the needle at arate not substantially different from the rate of motion of the needle.HeretoforeQthe rate of unwinding and movement through the guides hasbeen double the rate of the needle. -'I'he planetarygearing mechanismcan therefore give an accelerated motion to the needle while it is inthe shed without subjecting the weft to a correspondingly increasedstrain. As a matter of fact the weft in my'invention unwindsand passesthroughthe ofthe needle near a receiving guide eye 2l0 and. a lengthofweft -m leads from this guide to the movable eye 202 on theneedle, anda second length n extendsalong the needle to the delivery eye 203i- Fromthe-detailed description given of the preferred form of the invention itis believed that-the. operationofhthe modified form will be apparent. l,

. In both the modified and the preferred forms of weft control it is"important to locate the guide eyes 20] and 2l0 in such a position thatthe yarn extending between it and the auxiliary guide eye on the. needleshall be of substantially the same lengthfas halfla .double pick. Whilethis relationship is not absolutely necessary, I find it convenient tolocate these two guide eyes 201 and 2l0 substantially as shown in thedrawings, that-is, at one angle of an equilateral triangle the base ofwhich is the distance between the eyes moving with. the needle when thelatter is fully retracted from the shed.

While.I have shown the weft in Figs. '7 to 10 disposed. 'along'the sidesof a substantially equilateral triangle I do. not wish necessarily to belimited. to such an arrangement, inasmuch as part of the advantage of mypresent invention can be attained without necessarily locating the"guides 20 I. or 210 at the vertex of an equilateral triangle. It'isdesirable however that the weft .shall. approachthe guide which moveswith the needle in a direction oblique with respect to the needle and atan acute angle thereto. Thus it will'be sufficient if a normal dropfromthese guides to the needle when the latter isfully out oftheshed'passes between the thread delivery eye and the guide 202 on theneedle carriage. This partof my invention is susceptible of considerablevariation as to the location of the guides 20k and 2l0 withoutsacrificing the advantage of being able to draw ofi part of the doublepick when the needle .is moving into the shedor drawing oif theremainder of the double pick as the needle moves out of the shed.

The weft guides shown diagrammatically in Figs. 7 to llare set forthstructurally in Figs. 1, 2 andl2. The package of weft in the pre-.ferred form is carried bya support 220 mounted on the-loomiram ewhilethe guide eye 200 of the preferred iorm isfsupported by an arm 22! onthepart 220. -The guides 201 and 2l0 may be supported on a small stand 222fixed with respect to theloorn frame; while the auxiliary guide ontheouterend of theneedle in actual practice comprises two guides one ofwhich 223 extends upwardly from 'the needle carriage to apoint above theneedle rail sothat the yarn may pass forwardly-over therail. The secondguide eye 224 .on the needlerail extends forwardlyand is substantiallyin horizontal alignrnent' with the .needlewThe guide 225onthe needlerail 'as seen in Fig. 12 holds the yarn forwardlyout of entanglingrelationship with respect to the needle, but is not shown in the diagrammatic views since it does not materially effect the geometry of theweft feed.

Another important-feature grows out of the position of. the guides. 201and 2l0 and is illustrated in Fig. 11. When theneedle starts into theshed from the position shown for instance in Fig. 7 the auxiliary eye202 travels along a path which gets nearer and nearer the guide 201,

until the. needle has moved approximately half way into the shed,thereby tending to cause a slackness in the weft due to the fact thatthe distance between the guide 2M and the auxiliary eye is less than thelength i In Fig. 11 thegarc q passing through the auxiliary eye andhaving the eye;20l as a center falls below the needle by distances whichincre'ase until the needle is half way into the shed. It will beapparent in Fig. 11, however, that the distance between the selvage andthe delivery eye after theneedle .isrnoved into the shed is greate'rthan the radial distance between the auxiliary eye and the are q for thecorresponding position of the auxiliary eye, and-this relation requiresthat more weft be provided than can be supplied by the shortening of thedistance between guide ZOI and the auxiliary eye. There is aresultantunwinding of weft which tends to keep it taut, and no actual slacknessoccurs. After the needle passes its half way point the distance betweenthe. are q and the needle diminishes relatively tdthe continued motionof the needle into the shed and weft must therefore continue to beunwound. Because of the location of the guides 2M and 2"! I am enablednot only to unwind but one-half of a double pick on theneedle insertingstroke and therefore lessen the rate of unwinding, but I also preventthe occurrence of any objectionable slackness in the thread.

From the foregoing it will be seen that I have provided an Axminsterneedle operating mechanism including a cable trained around stationaryand movable pulleys wherein the latter are operated by planetarygearing'the effect of which is to retard the movement of the needle whenit is out of the shed. It will also beiseen that the planetarygearing'is connected to the same shaft which operatesthe selvage'shuttleand is so timed as to move the movable sheaves to that extreme of theirstroke which corre: sponds to the full insertion of the needle into theshed and its rapid reversal when the selvage shuttle operates. It willfurther be seen that the weftis led to the needle in such away as toreduce the rate of feed of the weft through the delivery eye comparedwith previous weft control systems in Axminster looms; This'reductien inthe rate at which the weft passes through the ne'edle eye isaccomplished by an arrangemc'nt which unwinds part of the double pickwhen the needle is inserted into the shuttle and draws off the otherpart while the needle is beretracted from the shed. This result mayconveniently be accomplished by placing anauxiliary or additional wefteye at the outer end of the needle to cause thethread to extend alongthe needle and the advantage is further-contributed to; by the factthatthe eyes 2M and 210 are located so as to be positioned substantiallyas already described. WhileI have shown two methods of controllingtheweft-in the diagrammatic Figs, 7 to 12 I do not wish-necessa[rily'to belimited to these forms, since the eyes 20! and 210 need not necessarilybe stationary nor is it necessary in all the forms of 'my invention tohavehthem substantially equidistant from the eyes 202 and 203.,Furthermorathere is no objectionable slackness of the weft during theneedle inserting stroke. a a I; f e

Having thus described my invention it'will be seen that changes andmodifications may bejrnade therein bythose skilled in the art withoutdeparting from thejspiritand scope of thelnvention and ,I do not wish tobe limited to the details herein disclosed, but what I claim is: g

a 1'. In a weft'needle operating mechanism for a loom having a warpshed, a needle rail, a needle carriage to slide along the rail,.a pairofspaced pulleys rotatable about fixed axes, a set of movable pulleysbetween the spaced pulleys, a cable attached to the carriage. andtrained around the pulleys, one end of the cable leading from thecarriage around one of the spacedpulleys and then around amovablepulley, and the other end of the cable leading from the carriagevaround the other of the spaced pulleys and then around another 'movablephl1ey, mean.s tohold the ends of the cable remote from the needlecarriage fixed with respect to each other, a continuously. "rotating.actuator, and a system of planetarygearing connectingthe actuator andthe movable pulleys to cause reciprocation of the carriage along therail and effect a slower rate of reversal in the needle carriage motionwhen the latter is remote from the Warp shed thanwhen said carriage isadjacent-to the warp shed. a

2. In a weft needle operating mechanism for a loom having a warp shed, aneedle rail, a needle carriage to slide along the rail, a pair of spacedpulleys rotatable about fixed axes, aset of movable pulleys between thespaced pulleys, a cable attached to the carriageand trained around thepulleys, one end of thelcable leading from the carriage. around one ofthe spaced pulleys and then around a movable pulley, and the other. endofthe cable leading from the carriage around the other'of the spacedpulleys and then around another movable pulley, means to hold the endsof the cable remote from the needle carriage sta tionary, a continuouslyrotatingjactuator, and a system of planetary gearing connecting theactuatorand the moyable pulleys to cause reciprocation fof the carriagealong the rail and efiect a slower rate of reversal in theneedlecarriage mo tion whenthe latter is remote from the" warp shed than whensaid carriageis adjacent to the warp shed. 3. In a weft needle operatingmechanism for a loom having a warp shed, a needleraiLa needle carriageto slidelalong the rail, a 'pair of spaced pulleys rotatable aboutfixed'ax'es', a set of movable pulleys betweenthe spaced pulleys-a cableattached to the carriage and trained around the pulleys, one "end of thecable leading from the carriage around one of the spaced pulleys andthen around a movable pulley, and the other end of the cableleading fromthe carriage around the other of the spaced pulleys and then aroundanother movable pulley; means to hold-the ends 7 of the cable remotefromthe needle carriage fixed with respect to the movable pulleys, acontinuously rotating actuator, and a system of planetary' gearingconnecting the actuator and. the movable pulleysto cause reciprocationofthe earriage ,along the rail" and efiecta slower rate of reversalin-th-e needle carriage motion when the latter is remote from the warpshed than when said'carriage is adjacent to the warp shed. 4.,'In aweftneedle operating mechanism-for a l'oorn havinga warp shed, a needlerail, arieedle carriage to slide along the rail, a pair of spacedpulleys rotatablelabout'fixed axes, a set of movable'pulleys between thespaced pulleys, a cable attachedtp the carria e andtrained around. thepulleys, joneend of the cablele'ading from the carriage around one of,thespaced pulleys and then around a movable pulley, and the other end ofthe cable leading from the carriage around the other of the spacedpulleys and then around another movable pulley, means to ,hold the endsof the cable remote from the-needle carriage fixed with respect to eachother, a continuously rotating actuator, a fixed solar gear concentricwith the actuator, a planet gear meshing with a solar gear and revolvedaround the solar gear by the actuator, an eccentric carried by theplanet gear having the axis thereof spaced from the axis of the planetgear and connections between the eccentric andthe movable pulley toreciprocate the latter at a variable rate and efiect reversal of theneedle carriage at a slower rate when the latter is remote from the warpshed than when said needle carriage is adjacent to the Warp shed. '5..In a weft needle operating mechanism for a loom having a warp shed, aneedle rail, a needle carriage to slide along the rail, a pair of spacedpulleys rotatable about fixed axes, a set of movable pulleys between thespaced pulleys, a cable attached to the carriage and trained around thepulleys, one end of. the cable leading from the carriage around one ofthe spaced pulleys and then around a movable pulley, andthe other end ofthey cable leading fromithe carriage around the other 'of, the spacedpulleys and then around another movable" pulley, means to hold, the endsof the cable remote from the needle carriage fixed with respect to eachother, a lever on which the movable pulleys are mounted, a continuouslyrotating actuator, a fixed solar gearconcentric with the actuator, aplanet gear meshing with the solar gear and revolved around th latter bythe actuator, an eccentric fixedwith respect to the planet gear andhaving the axis thereof spaced from the axis of the planet gear, and aconnector from the eccentric to the lever, revolution of the planet gearand eccentric around the axis of the solar gear reciprocating the leverto cause reciprocation of the needle carriage along the rail and effecta slower rate of reversal in the motion of the needle carriage when thelatter is remote from the warp shed than when said needle carriage isadjacent-to the warp shed. r I

6. In a weft needle operating mechanism for a loom having a warp shed, aneedle rail, a needle earriageto slide along the rail, a pair of spacedpulleys movable about fixed axes, a set of movable pulleys between thespaced pulleys, a cable attached to the carriage and trained around thepulleys, one end of the cable leading from the carriage. around oneofthe spaced pulleys and then around a movable pulley, and the other endof the cable leading from the carriage around the other of the spacedpulleys and then around another movable pulley, mean to hold the ends ofthe cable remote from the needle carriage fixed with respect to eachother, a continuously rotating actuator, a solar gear concentric withtheactuator, a planet gear meshing with the solar gear andfrevolvedaround the latter bythje actuator, a lever on which the movable pulleysarejmounted, and means to connect the lever to apart fixed with respectto, the planet gear andeccentric with than when said needle carriage isadjacent to the warp shed. V

. 7. In an Axminster loom having a needle rail and a weft needle to beinserted into and retracted from a warp shed, a needle carriage attachedto the needle and slidablealong the rail, a pair of spaced pulleysrotatable about fixed axes, a set of movable pulleys between thestationary pulleys, a cable attached to the carriage and having onepartleading from the carriage around one of the spaced pulleys and thenaround a movable pulley and having another part leading from thecarriage around the other of the said spaced pulleys and then aroundanother movable pulley, means to hold the ends of the cable remote fromthe needle carriage fixed with respect to each other, a continuouslyrotating shaft, an actuator connected to and moved by the shaft, asystem of'planetary gear ing connecting the actuator and the movablepulleys'to cause reciprocation of the carriage along the rail to effecta relatively slow rate of reversal of the needle and the carriage whensaid needle is out of the shed and effect a relat ively fast reversal ofthe needle and the carriage when the needle is in the shed, a selvageshuttle to cooperate with" the weft of the needle when the latter isfully inserted into the shed, and connections between the selvageshuttle and said shaft to cause an "operating motion of the selvageshuttle when said shaft, actuator, and planetary gearing complete thatmotion of the movable pulleys which inserts the needle into the shed.

8. In'an Axminster loom having a needle rail and a weft needle to beinserted into and retracted from the warp shed, a continuously rotatingdriving shaft extending across the loom, a needlecarriage connected tothe needle and slidable along the needle rail, a pair of spaced pulleysrotatable about fixed axes, a set of movable pulleys'between the spacedpulleys, a cable attached'to'ithe carriage and trained around thepulleys,'0ne' end of the cable leading from the carriage around one ofthe spaced pulleys and then" around a movable pulley and the other endof the cable leading from the carriage around the otherof the spacedpulleys and then around another movable pulley, means to hold the endsof the cable remote from the needle carriage substantially fixed withrespect to each other, a system of planetary gearing connected betweenthe movable pulleys and the driving shaft tobe driven by the latter tomove the carriage along the railand effect a relatively slow rerespectto theaxis of the planet gear, revolution versal in the'directi'on ofmotion of the carriage when the needle is out of the shed and efiect arelatively fast reversal in the direction of motion of the carriage whenthe needle is in the shed, a selvage shuttle at theside of the loomopposite the needle rail, and connections between the shaft and theselvage shuttle to give the latter anoperative movement with respect tothe weft'of the needle whenthe system of planetary gearing hassubstantially completed that'movement of the movable pulleys whichinserts the needle into the warp shed.

: 9. In an Axminster loom having a needle rail and aneedleto be insertedinto and retracted from thewarp-shedra needle carriage connectedtothe-needle ,andslidable along the needle rail toward and from-the warpshed, a pair of spaced pulleys rotatable about fixed axes, movablepulleys located between the spaced pulleys,a cable connected tothecarriage andhaving one part extending, fromthe carriage and trainedaround one of the spaced pulleys and one of the movable pulleys andhaving another part extending from the needle carriage and trainedaround the other spaced pulley and another of the movable pulleys, meansto hold the ends of the cable remote from the needle carriagesubstantially fixed with respect to each other, a selvage shuttle atthat side of the loom opposite the needle rail, a system of planetarygearing connected to the movable pulleys to reciprocate the latter, adriving shaft extending across the loom, and two actuators connected tothe shaft, one of said actuators having a driving connection withrespect to the selvage shuttle and the other actuator connected to thesystem of planetary gearing, the planetary gearing operating duringrotation of the shaft to effect a relatively slow reversal in thedirection of motion of the needle carriage when the needle is out of thewarp shed and efiect a relatively rapid reversal in the direction ofmotion of the needle carriage when the needle is in the warp shed, thesystem of planetary gearing moving the movable pulleys in one directionto insert the needle into the shed and moving said movable pulleys inthe opposite direction to retract the needle in the shed, and theactuator for the selvage shuttle being moved by the shaft to effect anoperative motion of the selvage shuttle with respect to the Weft of theneedle when the shaft and planetary gearing have completed a motion ofthe movable pulleys in the direction correspond-- ing to insertion ofthe needle into the warp shed.

10. In an Axminster loom having a needle to be inserted into andretracted from the warp shed, a needle rail at one side of the loom, a

needle carriage fixed to the needle and slidable along the rail, spacedpulleys rotatable about fixed axes, movable pulleys between the spacedpulleys, a cable attached to the needle carriage and having one partthereof trained around one of the spaced pulleys and around one of themovable pulleys and having another part thereof secured to the needlecarriage and trained around the other of the spaced pulleys and aroundthe movable pulleys, means to hold the ends of the cable remote from theneedle carriage relatively fixed with respect to each other, a drivingshaft extending across the loom, a system of planetary gearingconnecting the movable pulleys to the driving shaft and effective toreciprocate the movable pulleys to complete movement of the latter in adirection to insert the needle into the warp shed at a given point inthe rotation of the driving shaft, and thereafter move the movablepulleys in the opposite direction to retract the needle from the shed,said planetary gearing effecting a relatively slow reversal in thedirection of motion of the needle carriage when the needle is out of thewarp shed and effecting a relatively rapid reversal of motion of theneedle carriage when the needle is fully inserted into the shed, aselvage shuttle at that side of the loom opposite the needle rail, andoperating connections between the shaft and the selvage shuttle to givethe latter an operating motion with respect to the weft of the needle atsaid point in the rotation of the driving shaft corresponding tocompletion of movement of the movable pulleys in that direction whichinserts the needle into the warp shed.

OSCAR V. PAYNE.

